Philanthropy

Philanthropy

Carl A. and Thelma S. Brown, of Reading, Pennsylvania, have established an endowment in the Department of Animal Science in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences that will offer students at Penn State campuses around the state an opportunity for out-of-classroom enrichment activities at University Park.

A new endowment in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences will leave a good taste in the mouths of graduate students studying one particular aspect of food science. Gregory Ziegler, professor of food science, has pledged a total of $25,000 to establish the John and Jane Ziegler Graduate Award in Sensory Science.

Penn State graduates James and Pamela Reese Arbuckle, of Bellevue, Nebraska, have provided a $50,000 gift to endow the James and Pamela Reese Arbuckle Scholarship in International Agriculture, the first scholarship to support students studying international agriculture.

A $50,000 gift from Ray and Jan Evans, of Stow, Ohio, will provide financial support for scholarships, entrepreneurship programs and facility upgrades in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences and College of Engineering. Ray Evans is a 1960 graduate of Penn State with a bachelor's degree in agricultural engineering.

The Pennsylvania Agronomic Education Society has provided a $50,000 gift to create a scholarship endowment that will support students in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences who have demonstrated financial need. First preference for the Pennsylvania Agronomic Education Society Trustee Scholarship will go to students who enroll in the Crop Production option of the plant sciences major.

Atherton Building’s Grandfather Clock Lounge was packed with Penn State students in attendance for Distinguished Alumnus Edward Hintz’s address on "The Ethics of Philanthropy," an event which was part of the yearlong program of the Schreyer Honors College’s "Shaping the Future" Summit.

The financial impact of a food product developed by a team of Penn State food science students will have a much longer shelf life than the product itself, thanks to an anonymous investor who bought the rights to potentially produce it. An unnamed large company purchased the idea -- called Mooofins -- for $25,000, and the funding will be used to establish the Program Support Endowment for Food Science Students.

Professor Emeritus Phil Keeney has been intimately linked with Penn State's Department of Food Science since its establishment in 1975. Now, an anonymous $1 million gift will ensure that his name is connected to the department's programs in perpetuity.

The transformational gift of Penn State alumnus James Simpson will lift up generations of talented and hardworking undergraduate and graduate students in the College of the Liberal Arts. When fully funded, his gift of nearly $5 million for scholarships will support more than 40 students each year with awards of $5,000 each. “Jim was a dedicated supporter of the college for many years, and we were very sad to lose him over a year ago,” said Susan Welch, the Susan Welch Dean of the College of the Liberal Arts. “However, his generosity will continue to elevate the lives of our students for decades to come. The college has students at all levels of financial need, particularly in the middle, the ones who typically would fall through the cracks. Jim’s scholarship will provide crucial support as they complete their degrees.”

Penn State's senior class has voted to go green for the second year in a row with 2015's winning class gift option. The 2015 Class Gift Committee announced today (Oct. 22) that the class has chosen the Solar Panel Array as its gift to the University. Members of the Class Gift Campaign will be soliciting pledges through events, e-mails and phone calls to students graduating in May, August or December 2015. Seniors also are encouraged to make a gift at www.ClassGift.psu.edu online.

Much of LeRoy Smeltz's life centered on the field of agricultural education, so it is fitting that a scholarship in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences now bears his name, according to the family members who established it. Lynn and Joyce Dietrich, of Chambersburg -- Smeltz's son-in-law and daughter -- created the LeRoy C. Smeltz Memorial Trustee Scholarship, which will benefit Agricultural and Extension Education majors with demonstrated financial need.

As a Penn State faculty member and administrator, James Mortensen was a firm believer in experiential learning. Now, he and his wife, Sharon, have endowed a new scholarship for students with financial need in the College of Agricultural Sciences that reflects that belief.

With a gift of $50,000, Penn State alumnus Dan Eichenlaub and his wife, Barbara, have endowed the Barbara U. and Daniel J. Eichenlaub Trustee Scholarship, which will benefit students in the College of Agricultural Sciences with demonstrated financial need. First preference for funds will go to incoming first-year students.

Retired long-time faculty member and department head in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences C. Channa Reddy and his wife, Usharani, have given $50,000 to create the C. Channa and Usharani C. Reddy Trustee Scholarship. The scholarship will help students in the college who have demonstrated financial need, with first preference given to immunology and infectious disease majors.

Eugene and Carol Schurman, of Clymer, Pennsylvania, have given $50,000 to establish the Eugene and Carol Schurman Trustee Scholarship in the College of Agricultural Sciences. The scholarship will benefit students with demonstrated financial need, with first preference going to animal science majors.